Temporary Life, Neverending Love
by kayke
Summary: On Halloween Night there is a strange turn of events and a boy realises he might have feelings for his best friend. But how does she feel about him? Can he make her love him by getting her the perfect death day gift? LockxShock
1. Prize or Punishment?

Halloween night was going well as always. Since Jack had started to concentrate on his own holiday again the scare ratings had gone up tremendously. It was midnight and almost time for the mayor to make his yearly announcement and give out prizes.

"Lock, Shock, Lets go watch the show! Jack will be riding in any second now!" asked a young boy of about 14 pleaded. He had green hair and was dressed like a skeleton.

"Why do you want to go watch so bad." An older girl who was dressed like a witch questioned sarcastically and stuck a lollipop into her mouth "It's been the same every year since we were kids. First Jack comes in dressed like a scarecrow"

"Then he sets himself on fire" another boy about the same age as the girl continued and took a bite out of the already half eaten chocolate bar in his hand. He was dressed like a devil with a tail and yellow eyes to match.

"Then we sing that stupid pumpkin song" The girl added sounding more exited than before.

"and Jack jumps into the fountain" The eldest boy added and began to chase the girl in circles around the other boy.

"and then the mayor hands out awards" The younger boy chimed in.

"and then he sees the giant spiders we hid in all the trophies!" The two older teens said in unison.

"Lets go!" The devil-looking boy said happily. By this time they were practically to town square and he had caught the girl and was running and carrying her as she kicked and protested and the younger boy was trailing behind.

" Put me down this instant Lock! You're going to make me spill my candy bag!" The witch demanded angrily and kicked the boy in the shin causing him to release her.

"Ow!" Lock said "That hurt!" He snatched Shocks lollipop out of her mouth.

"Hey! Give that back you, jerk!" She said jumping for it but he held it out of her reach.

"Aww, does little Shocky want her candy?" He mocked and started to run down the street with the lollipop.

"You give that back! Its black berry spider! You know that's my favorite!" She yelled as she chased him down. After a few minutes she had caught up and jumped onto his back.

"Oh, one minute you yell at me and kick me and the next minute you can't keep your hands off of me." Lock said with a smile. Shock opened her mouth to protest but before she could comment Lock shoved the lollipop back into her mouth. "Come on, You can beat me up when we get home. We're gonna miss the show."

"Come one you two! I want to watch!" Barrel whined and set off like a jet to town square.

"Stupid kid, He's never gonna see anything if he rushes off into that crowd." Lock observed.

"Yeah, Let's go watch from the gate. If we sit up there we can see over the crowd and the twerp will be able to catch on and join us." Shock agreed she then kicked Lock in the sides as if he was a horse "Get a move on!"

"Ow." He said as he started running tword the gates "You could have asked for a ride. You don't have to kick me all the time."

"But kicking is more fun, and I'm sure you deserved it anyway." She teased and to her surprise he dropped her. Lock climbed up so he was sitting on the stone wall and Shock followed. Lock offered his hand to help "I can do it myself." She snapped and with a little effort was sitting on the wall too.

"Look! Here comes Jack!" Lock called out and the whole town looked to the gate.

"Here he comes!" Shock agreed and at that moment the gate burst open and scarecrow Jack came in. The whole crowd started singing and cheering. Boggie's boys joined in too. By the time they got to the first chorus of the pumpkin song Barrel had joined them sitting on the wall. When the song was over and Jack had done his dance. The speech started.

"Now comes the boring part…" complained the youngest of the trio.

"Shut up, you wanted to come, so now we're staying." Shock said giving him a small hit on the back of the head. Lock wasn't too interested in the speech either but he didn't want to get hit.

"I would just like to thank everyone for doing their best to make Halloween great again this year. I feel that this Halloween was even scarier than the last. I have some great plans for next year also." Jack went on about his plans while Barrel fell asleep leaning on Shock. "And now I think it's time for the prizes. Mayor…"

Jack stepped aside and the Mayor took the mic. "The prize for the Most Potions Brewed goes to… The Witch Sisters!"

The overjoyed witches fought through the crowd to receive their trophy. When they reached the front they happily grabbed the prize and a spider lunged out onto the tallest witch's face. She shrieked and fell onto her sister causing them both to crumble to the floor. Every one in the crowd gasped.

The three trick or treaters laughed loudly breaking the silence. The mayor glared at them and the two older ones quickly silenced. Barrel then noticed he was the only one laughing, he awkwardly and slowly came to a stop.

"Eh-hem, now, The Most Horrifying Scream goes to…. JACK!" The Mayor dumped the spider from the trophy hastily before handing it to Jack. The mayor went on awarding his usual trophies. Most Spine Tingling Scare, Best Surprise Attack, Most Sneaky Ambush, Best Group Scare, Best Singular Scare, Then he came to Best Couple Scare…

"We all know Jack and Sally are going to win. They always do." Barrel said in a bored tone. The only thing keeping him awake was the fact that Shock would hit him every time he fell asleep.

"And the Best Scare by a Couple goes to…. Lock and Shock?" He read the card again confused. His doubtful face had taken over. "That's what the card says…"

"What!" Lock said angrily.

Shock agreed "What are you trying to pull?"

Jack stepped back up to the podium "Now, Now you two. No need to yell, Just come over here and get your prize.

"Nothin' Doin'!" Shock yelled back up at him. She took the lollipop from her mouth and stuck her tongue out at Jack.

Jack rubbed his temple for a moment and then looked back up at them. "COME DOWN HERE AND GET YOUR PRIZE!" He yelled showing why he had won best single scare.

Lock grumbled and hopped down from the wall and offered a hand to Shock. She kicked it away, "I can do it myself." She insisted. She turned around and scrabbled down the wall, Lock turned away quickly. Shocks dress was short and he had caught a glimpse of her panties. He saw the mummy boy, who was their age, looking and swiftly hit him on the head.

Once they were both on the ground they fought their way through the sea of town's people. Shock had taken hold of Lock's sleeve and was dragging him to the front. When they got there she dropped his arm and glared angrily at Jack. "Happy now? We're here."

"Alright, just kiss so you can have your trophy." Jack told them bluntly.

"No." Both teens answered in unison and reached for the prize.

Jack held it out of reach. "You know the rules. The couple has to kiss before they get the trophy. It's the rules." He informed them.

They both looked over at each other. Shock then looked over at the tarnished gold trophy. It was so beautiful; it would make a good dish to hold her candy. She hesitantly took the lollipop from her mouth, closed her eyes, and kissed Lock.

Lock stood there his mouth hanging open. That was his first kiss. He could feel a small blush creeping onto his pale cheeks so he put on his mask, which was as red as his face.

Shock Held out her hands to Jack "Gimme! I kissed Lock so now the trophy is mine."

Jack gave her the prize reluctantly. "I think you missed the whole point of it… But it is your prize." He said with a sigh. Shock nodded and pushed the oversized trophy into Lock's hands, signaling him to carry it.

He followed her back to where Barrel was. He was still too confused to argue with her. Jack said a few parting words and everyone started to disperse and head home. The trio did the same.

Later, in the Tricker-Treaters' Club House…

"It's almost our Deathday!" Barrel said happily looking at the old grandfather clock. It was about to chime one in the morning.

Shock's witch hat could be seen from behind the trophy, which was no filled with candy and on the verge of overflowing. "Don't get too excited, our party isn't for a few days…" Her mouth was mumbled and full of caramel. She stood up and looked around the room, no sign of Lock… well, almost.

She could see the tip of a red tail, swishing back and forth slowly outside of the window. Glancing over at Barrel she noted that he must be coming off of a sugar high, his snores were evidence of that. She stepped over his sleeping form and approached the window.

There was no glass in it and she crawled out easily. Pulling herself onto the roof to sit next to Lock, she slipped a little and grabbed onto his tail.

Lock, who had been lying back looking at the stars, sat up with a start "YoW! Watch the tail!" He half cried half growled. He then went to the edge of the roof and looked over to see a familiar pointed hat. "What in Halloween's name are you doing?"

"My stocking got stuck." She said and he noticed that her one leg was caught on a loose nail on the window sill. The other foot was trying to stand on the crooked sill and slipping. "It won't come loose…"

Lock swung himself into the window by holding onto the gutter. "Just hold still, Shock. I'll unhook it…" He traced his hand down the striped stocking on her leg until he found where it was snagged. The material was caught on a really rusty nail. "Stop wiggling or you're going to get cut!" He told her, annoyed.

"But, I'm slipping!" She fired back "I'm gonna fall!"

Without thinking Lock's tail wrapped around Shock's middle. This threw the young witch off balance and she let go of the gutter. Lock grabbed her arm and pulled. The material of the stocking ripped and they both fell backwards onto the living room floor.

"Oh… Not my dress too!" Shock whined as she noticed not only had her stocking ripped but a spot on her dress was torn when they fell. Her dress was already covered with crooked stitching from other times that she fell or got caught on something.

Lock's eyes couldn't help but look at the pale skin of Shock's thigh that was exposed by the tear. His tail removed itself from the girl's waist and brushed against her leg, moving the fabric higher up her thigh. Shock didn't seem to notice.

"I'll fix it in the morning…" she said with a sigh, getting up off of where she landed on Lock's stomach. Lock cursed silently, his tail had brushed against something lace just before she got up. Sitting up on his elbows he watched her gather Barrel up in her arms and move him over to the couch.

Lock grabbed an old scruffy blanket and covered the younger boy with it. He heard Shock yawn and turned to see her stretching, he quickly turned away. "I'm going to bed. Don't eat any of my candy," She said her version of good night.

"Alright…" Lock said, too confused to make any sort of comment or argument.

Shock gave him a slightly concerned look but then shook it off, walking up the spiral stairs to her room. Lock's eyes remained on the stairs for a minute and then landed on the grandfather clock. It was morning already. Lock left the living room, and the boy sleeping on the couch, walked through the red door to his room.

"I don't like her." He told himself as he sat on his bed "I can't like her…. But I think I do…."

The little devil took off his shoes and pants. He fell asleep in his boxers and red shirt.


	2. Jack's Lament

"Jack! Jack!" Lock ran into town square to find the Pumpkin King and the Mayor walking around the fountain. There were various boxes and blueprints all around. "Jack!"

"Hold on a minute, my boy." Jack said as he scanned over a paper. "No no no, Mayor, this is all wrong. We need explosions, not fire works. And there were supposed to be the flying kind of bats, not base ball ones."

"Jack! I need to ask you something!" Lock insisted as he followed the skeleton around.

"Can't you see we're busy planning next Halloween?" The mayor asked with his nervous/sad face. "We don't have time for this."

"Now, Now. No need to get upset," Jack spoke distractedly. He had handed Lock a box labeled 'x-mas lights' and then crossed out and written 'halloween lights'. "Put that right over there, Lock. No, over near those other boxes." He pointed, almost dropping the boxes he was holding himself.

"Jack, can I please just ask you the question?" Lock asked, getting a bit annoyed.

Jack motioned for the boy to come closer and put one arm on his shoulder, the other holding a blueprint. "First, I need to ask you a question: Do you think clowns or spiders are more scary?"

Lock looked at the blueprint and then at the Pumpkin King "Spiders, I guess…. But Jack, I seriously wanted to ask you something."

Jack frowned a little "Go on then."

"How did you know you were in love with Sally?" the devil boy asked and the skeleton man's jaw dropped off on one side.

After pushing his jaw bone back into the joint he answered, "Well, my boy… I was hoping you would help me with some of the plans for next year but why don't you go talk to Sally, as you can see the Mayor needs my help and he's still a little mad at you kids for that spider joke last night…" His boney hand pointed off toward the Skelington Mansion. "Sally should be inside… when you're done talking, I could use your help."

"Alright Jack…" Lock sighed. There was a look in Jack's eye sockets that said _this is not what I signed up for when Sally and I adopted Boogies Boys_.

While on the long walk up the stairs to Jack's house he thought of this morning.

_Lock came out of his room, yawning and stretching, his tail scratching his butt. He squinted through the morning light and saw Shock. She was sitting on the kitchen counter, wearing a dark green sweatshirt and short purple girl boxers._

_"Hey, idiot." She said, a sewing needle sticking out of the corner of her mouth. Her eyes never looked up at him but her tone was sort of playful. "Happy Deathday, Lock." _

_"Yeah, Another year dead." He answered "Happy Deathday to you too." He watched her leave sloppy black stitch marks in the purple fabric of her dress. "Hey, I'm gonna go out for a while."_

_"Whatever, but Sally and Jack want us to be there for dinner by 7 o'clock." Shock said, holding her dress out and inspecting her work with a sad sigh. She dropped her hands down to her lap, the dress going with it. This was the first time she had looked at Lock all morning. "Do you want anything for breakfast?" _

_Lock looked into her tired eyes. "Nah, I'm fine. Thanks." That word was foreign to his mouth and they both knew it. "Uh… I'll see you later…" He scratched the back of his neck and retreated to his room. He got dressed, grabbed his mask and climbed down the rope ladder from his window. _

_Shock had gone to the window of the kitchen. "Hey, Stupid!" She called and he turned around "Catch!" _

_A small bundle hit Lock in the face, bouncing off his mask. He opened it and saw two slices of toast with black berry jam and a lollipop. "Uh, thanks!" He said the 'th' word again. _

_"Whatever, just be there at 7 o'clock!" She said with a laugh and closed the window. Lock looked for another moment and then ran down through the cemetery to town. _

He reached the door and pulled the spider doorbell, sending a scream into the late morning sky. "Come in!" Sally called from a window, high up in the house "I'm in the study."

Lock ran through the house and found the spiral stairs that lead up to the study. When he came up through the hole in the spiral floor he saw Sally sewing a dress. "What do you think Lock?"

He looked at the dress that the sewing dummy wore. It was made of patches like Sally's only the colors were all dark purple and black and there was black lace. "It's... nice…" Lock said then added "It doesn't look your style though."

Sally laughed a warm happy laugh "It's not for me. It's Shock's Deathday present from Jack and I." Sally then made a thoughtful hum. "Hand me that ribbon there, would you dear?"

Lock grabbed the roll of black ribbon and walked over to give it to Sally. On his way over he say two little spider bows on a table. "What about these?" Lock asked holding them up.

"Perfect!" the Ragdoll chimed, grabbing the ribbon and bows and sewing the little bows onto either side of the low square collar and then wrapping the ribbon around the waist, with a bow in the back. "Perfect!" She said again happily.

Lock nodded in agreement. He then remembered why he was up here in the first place. "Sally… I asked Jack a question and he sent me up here cause he was busy… do you think I could maybe talk to you?"

"Of course." Sally put a hand on his shoulder and led him over to where two arm chairs were. She sat in one and he sat in the other. "What is it?"

"Well, how did you know you loved Jack?" Lock asked, a blush on his cheeks covered by his mask.

"Well… I guess I always knew. Ever since the Doctor put me together I had very strong feelings for Jack…" She said thoughtfully "He on the other hand took some time to notice his feelings. You know how Jack gets when he's planning a holiday, his mind can't think about anything but work. Why do you ask?"

"Well… I dunno… I guess I was just wondering…" Lock said turning away slightly. He then tried to change the subject "Has Shock mentioned anything she want's for her Deathday?"

"No, she hasn't." Sally said sadly "If she were to tell anyone it would be you."

"Well, she didn't tell me anything… All she did was call me stupid this morning and throw toast at my face…" Lock said with a defeated sigh.

"Shock threw toast at you?" Sally asked trying to suppress a laugh.

"Well, I guess it was actually her trying to make me breakfast. When I was leaving the house she called me and I turned around and she threw a package at my face… it had toast and some candy in it…" Lock told his mother figure the story.

"Well, you know how she is. It was actually pretty nice of her." This time Sally did laugh. "Hmmm. You still have two day's until the party. Why don't you just get her some black berry spider filled truffles like you do every year?"

"I want to get her something special… She would have turned 16 this year if not for that bath tub accident…" Lock said, sounding guilty.

"Well, you still have plenty of time to find her a nice sweet 16 present. Don't worry." Sally looked out of the window to town square where Jack was making big motions with his arms, trying to convey something. "Why don't you go down to the graveyard and pick some flowers for her?"

"Alright Sally," Lock said and for the third time that day "Thanks."

"It's no problem at all, I'll see you at dinner." Sally walked him out to the square.

"Lock, my boy!" Jack called out when they reached the fountain "Just who I wanted to see. Come look at these lyrics, do you think they're frightening enough? I can't think of anything that rhymes with 'Vampire'"

"Uh, try 'campfire', I'm in a bit of a hurry, I'll read the lyrics at dinner." Lock said as he did a running jump over a pile of boxes. In no time he was out of the square and in the graveyard. As he passed the dog house shaped tomb stone Zero appeared and started to follow him. He walked along the grave stones and into Sally's garden. There were some flowers there that looked dark and withered. "Perfect," He said happily and snatched a handful.

"I can't just give her flowers now, can I Zero?" Lock asked the dog and patted his head. "Hmmm… Santa is good at giving gifts. I bet he would know what to do."

Zero whined in slight disapproval but Lock ran off into the woods anyway.

Meanwhile…

"Hey, Barrel. Wake up." Shock shook his shoulder gently. After a moment she simply pushed him off of the couch. "Get up."

The young boy yawned. "Happy Deathday to you too."

"You slept through most of it. We have to go to Jack's soon and you need to get yourself cleaned up. Now." Shock said and started to fold the blanket that Barrel had been sleeping under. "Have you seen Lock? You haven't seen anything… lazy bum."

"He'll be at dinner. He wouldn't miss our Deathday." Barrel reassured her as he went off into his room to get cleaned up.

From the other room Shock shouted "Be at the manor at 7. I'll meet up with you and Lock later."

"Where are you going?" The youngest of the trio called.

Shock grabbed her hat and slid on her shoes "Shopping."

The girl skipped though the graveyard. When she came upon Zero's grave she whistled but was met with no response. She then patted her leg, "Zero. Here Boy." Still no answer from the ghost dog.

She didn't think much of it and continued her trek to town. Once in the square She tried to head off to the small shopping area but was stopped by Jack. "Shock! Could you come here?"

Shock went over to where he was. "Good afternoon, Jack. What's wrong?"

"You're good with surprises… what do you think would be most terrifying: A cat jumping out from behind a trash can or a bunch of bats swooping in from cloud cover?" The Pumpkin King asked, speaking with his hands as well.

"Why not do both one after the other? Double whammy." Shock said hitting her fist to her open palm twice.

"Brilliant." Jack said and Shock started to walk away. "Oh Shock!"

"What?" The witch asked trying not to show her growing impatience.

"Can you think of anything to rhyme with ghost?" Jack asked pointing to a blue print of a ghost that was lying around.

"Most, Boast, Host, Coast, Toast… I'm in a bit of a rush, Jack." Shock admitted "I have some shopping to do."

"Alright," Jack frowned slightly. "We can talk at dinner."

"Alright, see you at dinner." Shock agreed and ran off to the witches shop.

Once inside she looked around at the various items. There were so many strange and wonderful things for sale but she knew just what she needed. Walking up to the witch behind the counter she asked "Do you have any Bone Biscuits?"

"Fresh baked this morning, dear." The short witch answered. "How much would you like?"

"5 bags." Shock replied taking out some gold and silver pumpkin coins and laying them on the counter.

"Will that be all, dear?" The witch asked putting the bags on the counter and taking the coins and putting them into the large cash register with a loud ding.

Shock looked around the room. Suddenly she spotter something. "How much is that?"

"Oh, that's a very special piece… for you, 200 pumpkin coins." The tall witch answered almost overly sweetly.

Shock sighed as she thought about the racing broom she had been saving up for. Well, Lock's Death Day only comes once a year… "I'll take it." The girl emptied the contents of her change purse onto the counter. The tall witch handed her the new purchase and she looked at it with awe. It was a red pitchfork with a detailed design at the end of the staff like handle. "It's perfect." Shock mused. "Thank you." She called to the witches as she grabbed the cookies and ran out of the store.

"Shock!" Jack called to her.

"Sorry, Jack, I'm in a bit of a hurry. I want to talk to Sally before the boys come to dinner. Later alright?" Shock told her pseudo-father as she ran up the steps to the Skellington Manor.

"Arlight…" Jack said disappointedly and went back to looking over his plans.

Shock ran into the house. "Sally! Sally!" She called excitedly.

"Calm down, Shock darling, I hear you." She said as she came down the stairs. "Oh, How lovely. For Lock?"

"Yes," Shock nodded "He's not here yet, is he? I was hoping to borrow some wrapping paper and hide it somewhere before dinner."

"Hurry then, it's almost time for the boys to get here." Sally said with a smile as she lead the way into the sitting room.


	3. The Nice List?

Author's Note:

Well, I guess I'm destined to continue this fic. I've seen Nightmare in 3D twice and I recently met Pual Rubens/Pee-Wee/Lock at a horror movie convention... so heres the new chapter. Hot off the presses. Merow!

Lock walked into the snow covered wonderland. He had been there before but he was always taken aback by the cold and bright colors. He walked down into the town, his mask scaring some of the elves and penguins that were running about and having snowball fights. When he reached Santa's door he knocked lightly.

The big man himself opened the door. "Isn't it a bit late for trick-or-treating?"

Lock took off his mask and wiped the snow off of it as he spoke. "I'm not tricking or treating Santa. I uh… have something to ask you."

"Well, come inside then." Santa said and moved to let the boy pass. "I'll go get some milk and cookies. You can sit by the fire and warm up for a bit." The jolly fat man gestured to the living room.

Lock nodded and then took a chair near the fire. He watched the flames flicker and wondered how Santa had trusted him so easily. He assumed it was because Jack had adopted him. People called him 'Jack's boy' now, that got a lot more respect than 'Boogie's Boy'. Barrel was 'Sally's Boy' which made a lot of sense because he was always following her around when he could and he'd run crying to her when things went wrong. Shock, she was the only one that people considered to be a real child of the Pumpkin King, and rightfully so. She was the caramel apple of Jack's eye. Ever since Jack and Sally had become the trick-or-treater's guardians Shock had been 'Jack's Daughter'… Shock…

"What is it you wanted to ask me, Lock?" Santa startled the devil out of his thought. He placed a plate of homemade cookies on the table and took the chair across from Lock.

Lock's tail swished back and fourth nervously. "Well… You know what all the people in the world wish for right? I was wondering if you could tell me pick out a present for someone…"

"Hmmm, I suppose I could help you with that. You are on the good list this year." Santa said with a sly smile.

Lock looked up "I'm on the good list?!"

Santa nodded and picked up a scroll from the table next to him. "I almost scratched your name off after that spider incident but decided that you and your friends really did try to be good this year. Especially that Barrel… Shock could use some work though…"

"She's who I wanted to ask about." Lock said, reminded by Santa's mumblings. "It's our Deathday today and I don't know what to give her as a present. I want it to be something she really really wants. It has to be the best gift ever. She's turning 16 and I feel bad because she won't have a sweet sixteen party… So, if you could tell me what she wants I won't even ask anything for Christmas."

Father Christmas smiled and Lock noticed an odd twinkle in his eye. "That's very noble of you, to give up your Christmas present for Shock." Santa got up and started to walk toward the door labels 'Santa's Office'. "Come with me."

Lock got up and followed Santa. The room was cluttered and there was a strange machine with paper running through it. Upon observation, Lock saw that it was the list. In tiny neat print were the names of all the children of the world and exactly what they wanted for Christmas. "Woah…"

Santa chuckled and he did indeed shake like a bowl of jelly. "The list." He said and walked up to it. He pressed a few buttons on the type writer like key board and the paper zoomed through the machine, transferring from scroll to scroll and reel to reel. "Ah ha! Here we go…"

Back in Halloween Town

"I told him to be here by seven." Sock fumed as she paced the floor. "Where IS he?!"

"Just wait a little longer, my dear." Jack said as he put a boney hand on the witch's small shoulder. "I'm sure Lock will show up soon. I know it isn't one of your strong points but patience is a virtue."

"I'm tired of waiting, Jack!" She complained and stomped her foot. "I've been sitting here and waiting for an hour. Sally made his favorite stew for dinner and he isn't here. It'll ruin! He's such a spider brained little goblin face!" Shock stomped her foot.

"Now, Now, Shock. There will be no sad faces on your Death Day." Lock said and patted her on the cheek in a signal to smile. Shock half smiled half scowled. "Good, now why don't we go back into the sitting room with Barrel and Sally to play another board game?"

Shock looked through the arched door way at the burning fire and the Ragdoll sitting in the big red arm chair, playing idly with the hair of the youngest trickster who sat at her knee. She knew that Jack should be sitting in the other chair with her on the arm. She also knew that Lock should be sitting on the rug near the fire, whispering jokes to her as Jack talked about his plans for next Halloween. "I'm going to go find him."

"No you're not, young lady." Jack said with a scary, deep voice.

"Yes I am!" Shock said and walked over to the door. Her hand turned the knob and she looked back at the pumpkin king "I'm sorry, but I'm not a little girl anymore. I can make my own decisions and I've decided not to wait for him any longer, Jack."

The skeleton sighed, this wasn't going to be easy, he couldn't scare her into listening. "Fine, but it looks like rain." He grabbed a jacket from the coat rack "Take this and bundle up."

Shock hugged Jack with a smile that said it all. "I'll hurry back. Then we can look over some of those blue prints, ok?" She released him from the hug and then ran out the door. "I'll be back soon, Jack!"

"Daughters…" Jack said with a sigh. "I just can't say no when she smiles like that…" He walked with slumped shoulders back into the sitting room and was greeted with a barrage of questions from his wife and adopted son.

Back in Christmas Town…

"You sure that's what she wants, Sandy Claws?" Lock asked skeptically.

"The list never lies." The wise old man reassured. "Now, I suggest you go looking for one of those in one of the other holidays."

"What holiday would have something like that?" the boy looked appalled. "Wait… I remember! I saw one of those once!" He started toward the door and then looked over at Santa. "Thank you!" He ran up and gave him a hug and then ran out the door into the snow.

"Jack sure has his hands full…" the jolly old elf sighed. "But deep down that Lock's a good boy… He sure can eat cookies though…"


End file.
